Safety helmet with face guard



July 12, 1960 2,944,263

D. H- RAYBURN ET AL SAFETY HELMET WITH FACE GUARD Filed Feb. 24, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORS! 00mm H. RAYBURN, OLAF d. PEDE'RSEN and domv d. 1 75 CHER ATTORNEYS.

July 12, 1960 Filed Feb. 24, 1958 D. H. RAYBURN ET AL SAFETY HELMET WITH FACE GUARD 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 12, 1960 D. H. RAYBURN ETAL 2,944,263

SAFETY HELMET WITH FACE GUARD Filed Feb 24, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS. DONALD l1! Q/msun/v, 04 A F d. PEDE'RSEN anadoH/v (l. 1 75 CHER A TTORNEVS.

"as-44,263 SAFETY HELMET wrrn FACE GUARD Filed sebum, 1958, Ser. No. 717,007

'4 Claims. cl. 2-s) This invention relates to safety helmet devices, and more particularly to a safeguard accessory fora conventional football type helmet, or the like.

.It is an object of the present invention to provide in football helmet an improved faceguarddevic'e.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device as aforesaid which is positionally adjustable'in improved manner on the helmet, per se. v

, Another object of the invention is to provide a helmet faceguard device as aforesaid which is readily adjustable with improved facility to the facial configuration of and by the user.

Another object is to provide a device as aforesaid which is economical to manufacture; easy to adjust without tools; and which is failure-proof in operation.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the specification hereinafter, wherein:

States Patent r 2,944,262 Patented July 12, 1960 relative assembly of the members 12, 14, and the configuration thereof as shown in the drawings,.they are disposed to extend ahead of and to encircle the lower face and chin portions of the helmet wearer so as to effectively protect him from facial injuries.

The invention contemplates a novel and improved means for mounting the members 12, 14 upon thehelmet 10. For this purpose'there is provided for mounting at each cheek side portion of the helmet a circular base plate 24 formed of polyvinyl plastic or the like having a pair of holes 26 (Fig. to accommodate screws 28 (Fig. 3) for mounting the. base members 24 againstthe helmet 10. The base members 2-4 are provided with the centrally extending internally threaded pivot sleeves '20. for engagement with the screws 21, and are formed with.

axially extending serrated rim portions 30. The serrations 30 are'adapted' to mesh with similarly serrated portions 31 of discs 32'which are transversely grooved as indicated at 33 (Fig. 5) to receive in angularly locked relation therein the, end panels 16 of the member 12.

The base plates 2-4sand the discs 32 are centrally apertured as indicated at 34 to accommodate the shanks of the sleeves 29 when the latter are inserted through the apertures 19 of the members 12, 14. Thus, it will be appreciated that the base plates 24 may be initially asset'nbled upon the helmet by means of the screws 28, with the sleeves 20 extending therefrom. The discs 32 are then slipr-fitted upon the sleeves 20, and the interfitted faceguard devices are then slip fitted at their panel end portions upon the sleeves 20. The headed screws 21 Fig; 1 is a perspective view of a football helmet emare then threaded intothe sleeves 20, thereby completing the assembly of. the faceguard members relative to the helmet. Incidental to the assembly process the semitions 30, 3-1 permit the faceguard unit to be adjusted angularly 'at any desired attitude relative to the helmet;

' thus permitting the faceguard unit to be disposed for fFigs. 6, 7 are fragmentary perspective disassembled views of o th er components .of the device; and

Fig. 8 isa fragmentary View similar to Fig. 1 but of a modified form of faceguard arrangement, showing the latter 'in different positions ofadjustment;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary side elevatlonal view of a V modified for-1n of pivot panel. construction of the inven-.

tion;

Fig. 10 is a top plan thereof; and

Figs. 11, 12, 13,.are top plan, front elevational, and I side elevational views, respectively, of still another form of faceguarddevice of the invention.

I a As shown in Figs. 1-4, the ihventionQis provided in conjunction with a football type helmet it) having "a pair.

, of U-shaped' faceguard devices 12- -14 mounted upon optimum facial protection irrespective of the vagaries of facial configurations involved. 1

Whereas the heads of the screws 2i1 are illustrated herein as'being slotted so as to be manipulatable by screwdrivers or coins or the like, it will be appreciated that any other preferred means may be provided at the exposed ends of the screws to facilitate manual control thereof during angular adjustments of the members 12,

14. Also, it will be appreciated that by virtue of the arrangement of the present invention the fac'eguard ele ments are fully 'adjustableas explained hereinabove' without requiring" any positional changes of the base plates .24 relative to the helmet. Thus, the initial drilling of the helrnetitoaccommodate the screws 28 suflices toac'co'mmodate all subseq'uent positional "adjustments of the protective devices. Hence, any one helmet so equipped with the basefplate's 24 will be subsequently adaptable guard devices relative to the base plates.

the cheek portions of 'the helmet to encircle inspaced v relationf the lower face and chin portions of the helmet wearer. The protective devices 12, 14 are of rod-like form and maybe formed of any-suitable material such as a synthetic plastic or the like, being internally re Fig. 8 illustrates embodiment offeatures of the present invention in a' device employing only a single U- shaped faceguard'member 40. Thus, the member 40 corresponds to the member 12 of Figs. 1-7 and terminates in end panels 4 2 which slip-fit into the recessed inforced as by means of a metal wire, or the like, if

preferred. In any case, the loop portions 12- 14 terminate in opposite end panels 16, )18 respectively, all of which are apertured as indicated at '19 (Figs. 6, 7) to accommodate pivot sleeves 20 (Fig. 3) and lock screws 21, as will be explained hereinafter. Furthermore, the panels '16 of the members 12 are exteriorly recessedas indicated at 22 (Fig. 6) to accommodate therein inlaid mountings of the panels 18 ofthe member 14 at the portions 33 of the discs 32 as explained hereinabove. Thus, the heads of the screws 21 bear against the panels 42 to maintain the components in assembled relation, with the single faceguard member 40 projecting forwardly of the lower face portion of the wearer at the desired angle of elevation, as explained hereinabove. For example, it may be preferred to integrate the face guard bar member 14 with the serrated disc members 32, as by molding the bar 114 to include a serrated disc member 3 2. at each ofits ends. Thus, there will be no loose discs in the assembly, whereby handling and final assembly of the parts will be facilitated.

Figs. 9, l0 illustrate a somewhat modified form of hinge panel construction wherein the faceguard member 45 terminates at each. end in a flaring web portion 46 terminating in a disc shaped end 48 which is circularly serrated as indicated at 49 at the inside face thereof.

Thus, it will be appreciated that when the member 45- is pivotably mounted as by means of the screws 21 upon a helmet having externally serrated discs fixedly attached thereto as indicated at 24, Fig. 8, the complementing serrations will facilitate quick adjustments of the angular position of the faceguard member, to suit wearers of different facial dimensions and proportions.

Figs. 11-13 illustrate still another form of faceguard of the invention which is somewhat ladder-shaped and curved to encircle the lower face portion of the wearer. Thus, a pair of generally parallel strut portions 50-52 are disposed in front of the wearers face and merge together at opposite sides of the device into pivot panel portions 5454. These panels are circularly serrated at their inner faces as indicated at 56, for cooperation with externally serrated disc devices mounted integrally on the helmet as illustrated for example at 24 in Fig. 8. The strut portions 50-52 may be relatively braced as by means of vertical bar portions 58, which also serve to interrupt the otherwise continuously open space between the strut members; thereby increasing the degree of protection afforded by the device against entry of impact objects between the struts. It will of course be appre-v ciated that the component parts of the device of the invention are so designed and shaped as to be particularly adapted to be relatively inexpensively made, as by standard synthetic plastic molding processes. Thus the faceguard will be of smoothly rounded surface form and safe to use and convenient to adjust; while still being of high impact-resistant form.

Although only a few forms of the invention have been illustrated and described in detail hereinabove, it will be understood that various changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the following claims.

We claim: I

ll A safety device comprising in combination, a helmet adapted to substantially encase the head of the wearer and having opposite side cheek portions while having a frontal opening exposing the facial features of 'said wearer, and a facial feature protector comprising a U- shaped member adapted toencircle the otherwise unprotected features of the helmet wearer, said member termi nating rearwardly in a pair of apertured end panel portions, a base plate fixed at each opposite side cheek portion of said helmet and having centrally extending pivot devices and'serrated rim portions disposed concentrically of said pivot devices a serrated disc centrally apertured and slip-fitted upon each of the said pivot devices with the serrations thereof meshing with the serrations of said base plates, said discs being exteriorly recessed and accommodating therein in angularly keyed relation said panel portions of said protective device, the apertured portions of said panel portions being slip-fitted upon said pivot devices, and screw means engaging said pivot devices and locking together into assembled predetermined angular 4 relation said protector and said discs and said base plate and helmet unit.

2. A safety device comprising in combination, a helmet adapted to substantially encase the head of the wearer and having opposite side cheek portions while having a frontal opening exposing the facial features of said wearer, and a facial feature protector comprising a pair of U-shaped members adapted to encircle the otherwise unprotected features of the helmet wearer, said members each terminating rearwardly in a pair of apertured end panel portions, a base plate fixed at each opposite side cheek portion of'said helmet and having centrally extending pivot devices and serrated rim portions disposed concentrically of said pivot devices, a serrated disc centrally apertured and slip-fitted upon each of the said pivot devices with the serrations thereof meshing with the serrations of said 'base plates, said discs being exteriorly recessed and accommodating therein in angularly keyed relation the panel portions of one of said protective device members, the apertured portions of adjacent panel portions of said U-shaped members being keyed together and slip-fitted upon said pivot devices, and screw means engaging said pivot devices and locking together into assembled predetermined angular relation said protector and saidv discs and said base plate and helmet unit.

3. A safety device comprising in combination, a helmet adapted to substantially encase the head of the wearer while exposing the facial features thereof, and a facial feature protector comprising a U-shaped member adapted to encircle the otherwise unprotected features of the helmet wearer, said member terminating rearwardly in a pair of integrally formed enlarged disc-shaped end panel portions, said helmet having circularly shaped externally serrated portions at opposite sides thereof, said end panel portions being circularly serrated at their inner surfaces and pivot connection means mounting said end panel portions upon said helmet, with the serrations thereof meshing with the serrations of said helmet serrated portions.

4. A safety device comprising in'combinat-ion, a helmet adapted to substantially encase the head of the wearer while exposing the facial features thereof, and a facial feature protector comprising a generally U-bent laddershaped member adapted to encircle the otherwise unprotected features of the helmet wearer, said member terminating rearwardly in a pair of integrally formed enlarged disc-shaped end panel portions, said helmet having pivot devices extending from opposite sides thereof and serrated portions concentric of said pivot devices, said end panel portions being serrated at their inner surfaces and pivot connection means mounting said end panel portions upon said helmet pivot devices with the serrations thereof meshing with the serrations -of said helmet, whereby said protector is mounted in angularly keyed relation on said helmet.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

